JONATHAN   DICKINSON 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  NEW  JERSEY 


The  Rise  of  Colleges  in  America  ; 


AN    HISTORICAL    DISCOURSE 


DELIVERED    IN    THE 


First  Presbyterian  Church,  Elizabeth, 

Sunday,  January  25TH,   1880, 

BY 

HENRY  C.  CAMERON,  D.D., 

Professor  in  the  College  of  New  Jersey. 


PRINCETON,  N.  J.  : 

PRINTED    BY    C.    S.    ROBINSON    &    CO. 
1880. 


PREFATORY  NOTICE. 

The  Session  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Elizabeth,  N.  J.,  deter- 
mined to  commemorate,  by  appropriate  services,  the  one  hundredth  anniver- 
sary of  the  burning  of  their  church  in  the  War  of  the  Revolution.  As  the 
first  President  of  the  College  of  New  Jersey  had  been  a  pastor  of  this  church, 
the  Faculty  of  the  College  were  requested  to  appoint  some  one  to  deliver  a 
discourse  upon  "Jonathan  Dickinson  and  the  College  of  New  Jersey."  The 
Faculty,  at  their  meeting,  January  i6,  1880,  adopted  the  following  resolution  : 

"  Resolved,  That  Professor  Henry  C.  Cameron,  D.D.,  be  requested  as  the 
representative  of  the  College  to  deliver  the  address  referred  to." 

In  compliance  with  this  request  a  discourse  upon  "  Jonathan  Dickinson 
and  the  College  of  New  Jersey,"  or  "  The  Rise  of  Colleges  in  America,'" 
was  preached  in  the  church  at  Elizabeth,  on  the  morning  of  Sunday,  January 
25th,  I880.  In  the  evening,  the  Rev.  E.  Kempshall,  D.D.,  the  pastor  of  the 
church,  delivered  a  discourse  upon  "  Caldwell  and  the  Revolution." 

Instead  of  publishing  the  "  portion  relating  particularly  to  Jonathan  Dick- 
inson and  the  College  of  New  Jersey,"  as  requested  by  the  Trustees  of  the 
Church,  it  has  been  deemed  best  to  pul)lish  the  entire  discourse.  Although 
hastily  prepared  it  is  the  result  of  considerable  historical  investigation.  For  the 
facts  the  author  is  indebted  mainly  to  Bancroft's  History  of  the  United  States, 
Motley's  Rise  of  the  Dutch  Republic  and  The  United  Netherlands,  Hodge's 
Constitutional  History  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  Webster's  History  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church,  Alexander's  Log  College,  Sprague's  Annals  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church,  Green's  Discourses  (Notes  to),  Murray's  Handbook,  Hether- 
ington's  History  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  Bozman's  History  of  Maryland, 
Campbell's  History  of  Virginia,  Maclean's  History  of  the  College  of  New 
Jersey,  Hatfield's  Historv  of  Elizabeth,  N.  J.,  besides  numerous  pamphlets 
and  biographies. 


1 


DISCOURSE 


That  the  generation  to  come  might  know  them,  even 
the  children  zvhich  should  be  born  ;  zuho  should  arise 
and  declare  them  to  their  cJiildren. — Psalm  Ixxviii.  6. 

All  of  you  who  have  visited  our  National  Capitol 
will  recall  the  most  beautiful  picture  that  adorns 
the  walls  of  the  rotunda.  The  scene  is  laid  in 
the  little  harbor  of  Delfshavsn  in  Holland.  Upon 
the  deck  of  the  small  ship  kneel  a  little  band  of 
exiles,  most  of  whom  were  about  to  tempt  the  stormy 
Atlantic,  and  to  seek  in  a  new  world,  amid  hostile 
savages,  that  liberty  to  worship  God  according-  to 
their  conscience  which  was  denied  them  in  their 
native  land.  Here  were  their  pastor,  John  Robin- 
son, "  a  man  not  easily  to  be  paralleled,"  with  open 
Bible  and  face  uplifted  to  heaven  in  prayer  ;  and 
Wm.  Brewster,  their  ruling  elder;  and  John  Carver, 
destined  to  be  their  first  governor  ;  and  Wm.  Brad- 
ford, his  successor  and  the  historian  of  the  future 
colony  ;  and  Edward  Winslow  ;  and  the  gallant 
soldier.  Miles  Standish  with  his  wife  Rose,  beautiful 
as  an  angel,  her  hand  resting  upon  his  shoulder,  and 
her  face  touched  with  the  light  and  joy  of  heaven. 


tear  it  to  pieces,  and  let  those  who  are  most  hungry 
among  you  share  it."«  This  noble  devotion  silenced 
them,  and  they  retired.  Relief  came  from  God.  A 
violent  wind  caused  the  sea  to  rush  through  the 
breaches  in  the  dykes  with  such  force  as  to  inundate 
the  whole  land,  to  overthrow  the  ramparts  of  their 
enemies,  and  to  overwhelm  looo  of  the  Spaniards 
with  its  power.  Thus  the  city  was  delivered  ;  and 
by  a  change  in  the  wind  the  waters  were  again  driven 
back  to  their  place.  And  yet  there  are  men  who 
deny  a  superintending  Providence. 

And  when  the  Prince  of  Oranee  wished  to  re- 
ward  the  people  of  Leyden  for  their  bravery  and 
their  patriotism  and  their  attachment  to  the  cause  of 
truth  and  Protestantism,  what  do  you  suppose  they 
asked  at  his  hands?  Not  relief  from,  taxation,  not 
deliverance  from  any  civic  burden,  but  the  establish- 
ment of  a  University :  and  that  Institution  stands 
to-day,  a  monument  of  their  virtues,  a  crown  and  an 
honor,  and  a  means  of  usefulness  to  their  posterity. 
It  has  produced  some  of  the  greatest  scholars 
the  world  has  ever  known,  and  has  probably  done 
as  much  for  the  cause  of  science  as  any  similar  in- 
stitution in  the  world.  It  was  in  this  city  and  beneath 
the  shadoWs  of  this  University  that  the  pilgrim 
fathers  acquired  their  love  of  learning.  From  Hol- 
land, where  the  school  ever  stands  hard  by  the  church, 
and  not  from  England,  came  the  idea  of  the  common 
school,  which,  cherished  by  New  England,  has  ex- 
tended far  and  wide  in  our  land. 


"  To  the  end  that  learning  may  not  be  buried  in 
the  graves  of  our  forefathers,"  it  was  ordered  in  all 
Puritan  colonies,  that  "  every  township,  after  the 
Lord  hath  increased  them  to  the  number  of  fifty 
householders,  shall  appoint  one  to  teach  all  children 
to  write  and  read,  and  when  any  town  shall  increase 
to  the  number  of  one  hundred  families,  they  shall 
Set  up  a  grammar  school;  the  masters  thereof  being 
able  to  instruct  youth  so  far  as  they  may  be  fitted  for 
the  University." 

In  1636  the  General  Court  of  Massachusetts  voted 
a  sum  equal  to  a  year's  rate  of  the  whole  colony, 
towards  the  erection  of  a  College  ;  and  in  1638  the 
Rev.  John  Harvard,  who  died  shortly  after  his  arrival 
in  the  Colony,  left  the  College  one-half  of  his  estate 
and  all  his  library.  Thus  was  founded  Harvard  Col- 
lege, the  oldest  of  our  Colleges,  of  which  the  Rev. 
Henry  Uunster  became  the  first  president  in  1640. 

The  next  was  the  College  of  William  and  Mary, 
among  the  Cavaliers  of  Virginia,  as  the  other  had 
been  among  the  Puritans  of  Massachusetts.  It  may 
here  be  remarked  that  the  first  attempt  to  found  a 
College  in  this  country  was  in  Virginia,  and  that 
before  the  landing  of  the  Pilgrims  at  Plymouth 
Rock.  I  may  be  pardoned  for  alluding  to  this  fact 
in  the  history  of  my  native  state. 

The  first  Legislative  Assembly  that  ever  met  in 
America  was  that  of  Virginia  in  161 9.  A  proposi- 
tion was  made  in  that  body  for  the  erection  and  sup- 
port of  a  College,  but  unfortunately  the  great 
massacre  by  the  Indians  in  1622  led  to  the  abandon- 


lO 

ment  of  the  enterprise.  Another  act  In  reference 
to  the  college  was  passed  by  the  Assembly  of  Vir- 
ginia in  1660,  but  the  opposition  of  the  royal  gov- 
ernor caused  the  attempt  to  fail,  although  it  was 
intended  to  promote  piety  and  supply  an  able  and 
faithful  ministry. 

In  1 67 1,  Sir  Wm.  Berkeley,  the  Governor, writes  : 
"I  thank  God  there  are  no  free  schools  nor  printing: 
and  I  hope  we  shall  not  have  these  hundred  years." 
But  in  1692  a  charter  was  granted  by  William  and 
Mary  for  the  establishment  of  a  College  at  Williams- 
burg in  Virginia,  which  bears  their  names,  and  to 
which  they  gave  land  and  revenues.  The  Rev. 
James  Blair  was  its  first  president.  The  first  build- 
ing was  destroyed  by  fire,  and  the  second,  erected 
in  1705  from  designs  by  Sir  Christopher  Wren,  has 
like  Nassau  Hall,  been  twice  burned  and  twice  re- 
stored with  its  orio^inal  walls  still  standing. 

The  feeling  that  led  to  the  establishment  of  these 
two  colleges  pervaded  all  parts  of  the  colonies.  It 
again  manifested  itself  in  New  England,  and  Yale 
College  was  the  result.  In  1647,  only  nine  years 
alter  the  founding  of  Harvard,  the  people  of  New 
Haven  had  undertaken  to  establish  a  college  ;  but 
the  enterprise  was  abandoned  out  of  deference  to 
the  interests  of  Cambridge.  But  in  1700,  a  com- 
pany of  ministers  met  in  New  Haven  to  form  a 
College  association.  Shortly  after,  these  ten  minis- 
ters (another  was  subsequently  added,)  met  at 
Branford,  each  member  of  the  association  brinorlnor 
a  number  of  books  and   laying  them   upon  a  table 


II 

with  the  declaration  :  "  I  give  these  books  for  the 
founding  a  college  in  this  colony."  A  charter  was 
granted  by  the  General  Court  in  i  701.  This  college 
was  at  first  intended  to  be  especially  theological,  but 
the  plan  was  modified  to  the  design  of  instructing 
youth  in  the  arts  and  sciences,  who  maybe  fitted  for 
public  employment  both  in  Church  and  Civic  State." 
A  religious  test  (the  Saybrook  Platform,)  was  re- 
quired from  all  its  officers.  Its  pupils  were  taught 
and  its  commencements  were  held  at  various  places 
until  it  was  finally  located  at  New  Haven.  The 
Rev.  Abram  Pierson  was  its  first  President,  and  it 
received  its  name  from  F^lihu  Yale,  its  most  liberal 
benefactor. 

These  three  institutions  may  be  said  to  have  had 
a  purely  English  origin  and  represented  two  distinct 
forms  of  religion,  the  Congregational  and  the  Epis- 
copal. There  was  this  difference  however,  and  it  is 
rather  remarkable  in  view  of  the  strict  Puritan 
character  of  the  Massachusetts  Colony  and  of  the 
circumstances  under  which  Connecticut  was  settled, 
that  Harvard  was  more  independent  and  liberal  than 
Yale,  which  was  denominational  from  the  very  out- 
set. 

But  there  was  another  important  element  both 
among  the  people  and  the  religion  of  the  colonies 
that  was  as  yet  unrepresented.  This  was  the  Scotch 
and  the  Scotch  Irish,  the  great  Presbyterian  element 
of  the  infant  land.  And  here,  I  must  allude  to  that 
providence  of  God  which  preserved  this  country  not 
merely  for  Protestantism,  but  for  that  form  of  it  which 


12 

is  its  highest  and  grandest  form,  the  Calvinistic. 
Roman  CathoHc  settlements  were  formed  in  the  North 
and  in  the  South.  Mexico  and  South  America  were 
given  up  to  them,  but  they  barely  touched  the  ex- 
tremities of  what  now  constitutes  the  United  States,  in 
Canada,  Florida  and  Louisiana  with  their  missions  in 
the  Mississippi  valley.  The  Puritans,  strict  Calvinists, 
settled  New  Eno-land  ;  the  Dutch,  devoted  to  Cal- 
vinism  in  its  highest  form,  settled  New  York  ;  Puri- 
tans and  Presbyterians  settled  East  Jersey  ;  the 
Scotch  and  the  Scotch  Irish  poured  into  the  Middle 
and  Southern  colonies  from  New  Jersey  to  the  Car- 
olinas,  and  were  of  course  Calvinistic.  So  the 
Swedes  of  Delaware,  the  Germans  in  Pennsylvania 
and  elsewhere  (for  Reformed  and  Lutheran  agreed 
as  to  the  doctrines  of  grace,)  and  the  Huguenots  of 
South  Carolina  were  of  the  same  faith.  And  even 
the  Church  of  England  that  prevailed  in  Virginia 
and  elsewhere  was  Calvinistic  in  Its  articles,  while 
Methodism  had  not  yet  sprung  into  existence.  Thus 
from  Massachusetts  to  Georgia,  Calvinistic  Protes- 
tantism everywhere  prevailed,  save  among  the  set- 
tlements by  the  Eriends  in  West  Jersey  and  Pennsyl- 
vania and  in  the  Roman  Catholic  colony  in  Maryland, 
Without  detracting  in  the  least  from  the  liberal  char- 
acter of  Lord  Baltimore  we  must  remember  that  the 
Charter  of  Maryland  was  granted  by  a  Protesiajit 
Monarch,  who  would  not  allow  his  co-relieionists  to 
be  oppressed,  and  that  he  had  provided  that  the 
ordinances  of  the  Province  "  be  not  repugnant  nor 
contrary    *    '■'    to  the  laws,  statutes  or  rights  of  our 


13 

kingdom  of  England,"  and  that  no  interpretation  of 
the  Charter  "  be  made,  whereby  God's  holy  and  true 
Christian  religion,  *  *  may  in  any  wise  suffer  by 
change,  prejudice,  or  diminution."  From  one  end  of 
the  colonies  to  the  other,  the  doctrinal  type  of  Pro- 
testantism in  the  earlier  times  was  almost  uniform, 
the  differences  referring  mainly  to  church  order. 
Before  the  end  of  the  17th  century  200,000  Scotch 
and  Scotch  Irish  had  immigrated  into  this  land  ;  and 
but  for  the  intense  love  of  their  native  land,  the  per- 
secution of  the  Covenanters,  "in  the  killing  time," 
under  Claverhouse,  would  have  almost  depopulated 
Scotland.  Had  all  the  descendants  of  Presbyterians 
in  this  land  remained  true  to  the  faith  of  their  ances- 
tors and  not  imparted  so  much  of  their  strength  and 
vitality  to  other  denominations,  Presbyterians  would 
to-day  constitute  one-half  of  the  people  of  this  coun- 
try. As  it  is,  by  reason  of  their  steadfast  adherence 
to  truth,  their  intelligence,  their  strength  of  charac- 
ter and  their  enlightened  zeal,  they  are  the  greatest 
religious  power  in  this  land. 

In  most  parts  of  the  colonies  the  Presbyterians 
had  much  to  contend  with.  Conorregationalism  was 
established  by  law  in  New  England,  the  Friends 
were  in  Pennsylvania  and  West  Jersey  ;  in  the  other 
colonies  generally  the  Church  of  England  was  fa- 
vored in  all  respects  by  the  royal  Governors. 
Hence  the  difficulty  experienced  by  Presbyterian 
ministers  in  the  earliest  days.  They  were  impris- 
oned in  New  York  and  elsewhere  for  preaching  the 
Gospel,  and  only  occasionally  did  a   royal  governor 


H 

(like  Lieut.  Governor  Gooch  of  Virginia,)  have  the 
courage  to  say  that  they  were  "  not  dissenters,  but 
belonged  to  the  Established  Kirk  of  Scotland." 

East  New  Jersey  was  settled  by  persons  of  New 
England  origin,  the  earlist  settlers  of  Elizabeth- 
town  having  come  from  the  eastern  end  of  Long 
Island  and  from  Connecticut.  They  brought  with 
them  the  idea  of  religious  liberty.  In  the  very  first 
negotiation  for  a  settlement  "  about  the  Raritan 
river,"  the  deputation  from  New  Haven  to  Gov. 
Stuyvesant  insisted  among  other  things  upon  liberty 
"  to  gather  a  church  in  the  congregational  way, 
such  as  they  had  enjoyed  in  New  England  about 
twenty  years  past."  This  and  nearly  all  their  other 
demands  were  conceded  ;  but  no  settlement  was 
made  under  the  Dutch  dominion.  In  the  concessions 
to  settlers  made  after  the  country  came  into  the  pos- 
session of  the  English,  freedom  of  conscience  was 
granted  alone  with  other  terms  calculated  to  encour- 
age  immigration.  The  founders  of  this  town  in  1664 
were  then  of  Puritan  stock  and  brought  with  them 
their  Puritan  reliorion.  The  Rev.  Abraham  Pierson 
settled  in  Newark  in  1 667,  and  hither  they  were  obliged 
to  go  for  religious  services  for  a  few  years.  They 
soon  erected  a  meeting  house  upon  the  site  of  this 
very  building  and  organized  a  Christian  church.  The 
Rev.  James  Peck  became  the  first  pastor  about  1668. 
All  the  early  pastors,  as  was  natural,  were  from  New 
England,  and  were  Independent  or  Congregational 
ministers.  No  Presbytery  had  been  established  ; 
indeed  there  were  no  Presbyterian  ministers   as  yet 


15 

in  the  country.  But  the  Scotch  tide  of  immigration 
soon  reached  this  town.  Bancroft  says,  "A  great 
many  inhabitants  of  Scotland  emigrated  to  New 
Jersey,  and  enriched  American  society  with  a  valu- 
able accession  of  virtue  refmed  by  adversity,  and  of 
piety  invigorated  by  persecution."  "  Is  it  strange," 
says  he,  ''that  many  Scottish  Presbyterians  of  virtue, 
education  and  courage,  blending  a  love  of  liberty 
with  religious  enthusiasm,  came  to  East  New  Jersey 
in  such  numbers  as  to  (jive  to  the  risine  common- 
wealth  a  character  which  a  century  and  a  halt  has 
not  effaced?"  The  name  "Scotch  Plains,"  isderived 
from  those  who  came  to  this  town.  Many  of  the 
proprietors  of  the  colony  were  Presbyterians  and 
sent  over  a  considerable  number  of  colonists  of  their 
own  faith  ;  and  at  last  a  Presbyterian  Deputy  was 
appointed  to  rule  over  them.  Within  a  generation 
this  Presbyterian  element  predominated  over  the 
Puritan,  for  both  the  church  and  the  pastor  united 
with  the  Presbytery  of  Philadelphia  in  1717.  And 
it  is  remarkable  that  subsequently  it  was  claimed 
"  that  the  first  purchasers  and  associates  [i.  e.  of  this 
town,]  did  give  the  aforesaid  Tract  of  Land,  for  the 
use  of  a  Presbyterian  Church,  the  record  of  which 
on  or  about  the  year  1719  was  either  lost  or  de- 
stroyed." In  response  to  this  claim  your  trustees 
(I  believe,)  now  hold  this  lot  of  land  from  the  free- 
holders. 

Except  those  in  this  part  of  New  Jersey  our 
early  ministers  from  Father  Makemie  and  his  col- 
leagues   down  through  a    generation    were    chiefly 


i6 

from  Scotland  and  Ireland.  Three-fourths  of  those 
who  formed  our  Presbyteries  (1705  et  seqq.,)  were 
from  beyond  the  sea;  about  one-fourth  from  New 
England.  But  the  assimilation  between  Indepen- 
dents and  Presbyterians  outside  of  New  England 
was  almost  complete,  and  is  not  surprising.  The 
former  were  thoroughly  Calvinistic  in  doctrine,  be- 
lieved in  the  parity  of  the  ministry,  and  had  pre- 
served the  office  of  ruling  elder.  Their  Association 
exercised  nearly  all  the  powers  of  the  Presbytery 
and  there  existed  the  right  of  appeal.  These  are 
the  essential  elements  of  Presbyterian  Church  Gov- 
ernment ;  and  if  was  only  in  later  times  that  the 
divergence  became  greater  and  more  manifest. 

What  may  be  called  the  second  generation  of  Pres- 
byterian minisrters,  the  Tennents,  the  Blairs,  Pem- 
berton,  Dickinson,  Brown  and  others,  were  remarka- 
ble men.  Their  characters  made  a  great  impression 
not  only  upon  the  church,  but  upon  the  people,  and 
they  seemed  raised  up  for  a  peculiar  purpose. 
Rarely  has  the  church,  since  the  day  of  the  Refor- 
mation, been  in  a  lower  condition  in  Great  Britain 
and  America  than  it  was  in  the  early  part  of  the 
eighteenth  century.  Bishop  Butler,  the  great  author 
of  the  Analogy,  says  that  in  his  day  in  England 
Christianity  seemed  to  be  regarded  as  a  fable  among 
all  persons  of  discernment ;  religion  had  so  far  de- 
cayed in  the  nation  since  the  return  of  the  Stuarts 
and  the  exclusion  of  the  non-conformists  that  it 
seemed  to  have  lost  its  influence  upon  the  minds  of 
men.     John  Newton  says,  that  before  the  rise  of  the 


17 

Methodists,  "  the  doctrines  of  grace  were  seldom 
heard  from  the  pulpit,  and  the  life  and  power  of  re- 
ligion were  little  known."  Religion  in  Scotland  was 
at  a  very  low  ebb  and  had  been  declining  for  nearly 
half  a  century.  "Many  of  the  moderate  ministers 
regarded  Christianity  as  merely  an  improved  sys- 
tem of  morality  and  their  sermons  were  little  more 
than  moral  essays."  Yet  there  had  been  a  few  re- 
vivals in  the  West  of  Scotland,  and  that  remarkable 
outpouring  of  God's  Spirit  at  the  kirk  of  Shotts  oc- 
curred in  I  730. 

In  New  England  there  was  defection  from  sound 
doctrine,  and  great  decay  as  to  the  life  and  power 
of  godliness.  Edwards  alludes  to  the  tendency  to 
Arminianism,  and  President  Clap  of  Yale  College 
is  stated  to  have  been  the  only  Calvinist  among  the 
Trustees  or  the  Faculty. 

In  the  Presbyterian  Church  there  was  no  preva- 
lent error  in  doctrine,  all  the  ministers  adhered  to 
the  Westminster  Confession,  and  were  men  of  blame- 
less lives.  But  there  was  general  coldness  and 
sluggishness  with  regard  to  religion,  and  this  not 
merely  among  the  people,  but  also  among  the  min- 
isters, some  of  whom  may  have  been  unacquainted 
with  experimental  religion. 

But  God  in  mercy  revived  his  work  simultane- 
ously in  the  mother  country  and  in  the  colonies.  In 
Great  Britain  the  revival  began  with  John  Wesley 
and  his  companions  in  the  University  of  Oxford. 
Methodism  then  took  its  rise,  and  its  power  has  ex- 
tended throughout  the   world.     The  irreat  thouo-ht 


that  filled  the  mind  of  John  Wesley  through  his 
long-  life  seemed  to  be  the  salvation  of  souls.  With 
him  was  joined,  at  first,  George  Whitfield  ;  but 
Wesley  being  an  Arminian  and  Whitfield  a  Calvin- 
ist,  they  separated  in  1 740.  Wherever  Whitfield 
went  with  his  burning  eloquence  multitudes  were 
converted  to  God,  and  he  was  the  instrument  in  the 
salvation  of  a  countless  number  of  souls.  In  our 
Church  the  great  revival,  as  it  has  been  termed, 
began  at  Freehold  in  this  colony,  under  the  minis- 
tration of  Mr.  John  Tennent,  1730-32,  and  was  con- 
tinued until  1744  under  his  brother  William,  who 
gave  a  full  account  of  this  work  in  a  letter  to  Mr, 
Prince  of  Boston.  The  revival  then  extended  to 
Lawrence,  Hopewell  and  AmwelL  In  August,  1739, 
the  work  manifested  itself  among  the  young  people 
of  Newark  and  continued  with  increasing  power  for 
months  ;  then  decaying,  it  again  exhibited  its  force 
in  I  741.  Mr.  Dickinson,  the  pastor  of  this  church, 
preached  in  Newark  and  was  greatly  interested  in  the 
revival.  Although  he  had  faithfully  preached  the 
Gospel  among  his  people,  the  results  were  not  such 
as  he  hoped  and  prayed  for.  Whitfield  preached 
in  Elizabethtown,  Nov.  19,  1739,  to  700  people,  but 
Mr.  Dickinson  could  observe  no  saving  effects  from 
the  sermon.  In  1740  he  himself  preached  a  sermon 
to  the  young,  and  in  the  course  of  its  delivery  a 
sudden  and  deep  impression  visibly  appeared  upon 
the  congregation  in  general.  There  were  such 
tokens  of  a  solemn  and  deep  concern  as  he  had 
never   before    seen    in    any   congregation,     "  More 


19 

young  people,"  he  said,  "  came  to  him  for  direction 
in  their  spiritual  condition  in  three  months  than 
within  thirty  years  before."  To  the  effects  of  that 
remarkable  revival  may  be  traced  the  character  and 
reputation  of  Elizabeth  for  more  than  a  century. 
May  you  prove  yourselves  not  unworthy  of  your 
noble  ancestry,  and  in  cherishing  the  memory  of 
your  forefathers  imitate  their  virtue  and  their  high 
character  ! 

There  is  not  time  to  trace  this  revival  through- 
out our  church  in  this  State  and  Pennsylvania. 
Throughout  New  England  and  especially  in  Virginia 
beyond  our  church  was  the  hand  of  God  manifest. 
In  some  parts  of  the  country  there  were,  doubtless, 
objectionable  features;  but  the  great  aggregate  re- 
sults and  the  mighty  influence  for  good  exerted  upon 
this  whole  country  prove  conclusively  that  it  was  "a 
wonderful  display  both  of  the  power  and  the  grace 
of  God." 

Upon  this  subject  we  have  the  testimony  of  Ed- 
wards, Cooper,  Coleman  and  Bellamy  in  New  Eng- 
land ;  of  the  Tennents,  Blair,  Dickinson  and  Davies 
in  our  church  ;  and  we  know  the  doctrines  taught 
were  the  doctrines  of  the  Reformation,  the  doctrines 
of  grace,  which  have  been  honored  of  God  in  the 
salvation  of  souls  in  all  ages  of  the  Church.  It  is 
not  surprising  that  in  the  ardent  desire  for  the  con- 
version of  sinners  errors  were  committed.  Itiner- 
ants and  ministers  from  the  churches  in  one  Pres- 
bytery thrust  themselves  into  the  bounds  of  churches 
in  another   Presbytery  against    the    wishes    of    the 


20 

pastors  ;  and  earnest  men  were  permitted  to  preach 
who  were  not  properly  quahfied.  In  consequence 
of  these  evils  the  Synod  of  Philadelphia  enacted  a 
rule  against  itinerants,  and  another  requiring  all 
who  had  not  received  a  diploma  to  be  examined  by 
a  committee  of  the  Synod,  and  if  found  qualified 
they  were  to  receive  a  certificate  that  should  be 
equivalent  to  a  diploma.  The  Presbytery  of  New 
Brunswick  protested  against  these  rules,  and  repeat- 
edly disregarded  that  in  reference  to  the  examination 
of  candidates.  The  elder  Tennent  had  established 
a  school  at  Neshaminy  in  Pennsylvania,  subsequently 
styled  "  the  Log  College,"  and  a  number  of  minis- 
ters had  been  trained  there.  Gilbert  Tennent 
thought  that  the  rule  in  reference  to  candidates  was 
aimed  at  his  father's  school,  while  the  majority  of 
the  Synod  declared  that  they  desired  only  to  secure 
an  adequately  educated  ministry.  These  contro- 
versies produced  dissensions  that  ultimately  led  to 
the  great  schism  in  the  Church.  The  New  Bruns- 
wick Presbytery  and  especially  Tennent  and  Blair 
were  wrong  in  their  censorious  spirit  and  their  con- 
demnation of  their  brethren.  Mr.  Tennent's  famous 
Nottingham  Sermon  upon  "  the  danger  of  an  un- 
converted ministry"  was  one  of  the  chief  causes  of 
the  Schism.  The  Synod  perhaps  acted  unwisely  in 
the  way  in  which  the  majority  met  the  charges  of 
Tennent  and  his  party  and  condemned  the  Presby- 
tery of  New  Brunsw^ick  in  1741. 

Mr.   Dickinson,  the  pastor    of  this  church,    was 
Moderator  of  the  Synod  in    1742,  and  he  with  the 


21 


Other  members  of  the  New  York  Presbytery  endeav- 
ored for  some  years  to  produce  a  reconciHation ;  but 
their  (efforts  were  unsuccessful,  and  eventually  two 
Synods  were  formed,  that  of  Philadelphia  and  that 
of  New  York.  The  revival  was  thus  the  occasion 
of  a  division  which  lasted  seventeen  years.  Oppo- 
sition to  the  revival  was  the  standing-  charge  ao-ainst 
the  one  party  ;  but  for  the  most  part  it  was  only 
opposition  to  extravagance  and  disorder.  The  other 
party  was  charged  with  slighting  the  importance  of 
an  educated  ministry  ;  but  it  was  not  learning  that 
was  disregarded,  there  was  not  confidence  in  the 
existing  colleges  ;  and  they  were  opposed  to  the 
plan  of  the  Synod  establishing  a  Seminary.  There 
was  substantial  agreement  as  to  doctrines.  "  The 
great  schism  was  not  the  result  of  conflictino-  views 
either  as  to  doctrine  or  church  government.  It  was 
the  result  of  alienation  of  feeling  produced  by  the 
controversies  relating  to  the  revival." 

The  Old  Synod  had  directed  its  attention  to  the 
matter  of  education.  "  The  Log  College "  at 
Neshaminy  had  educated  some  of  its  most  distin- 
guished ministers.  In  1739  an  overture  proposino- 
the  establishment  of  a  school  under  the  care  of  the 
Synod  was  unanimously  approved,  and  it  was  deter- 
mined to  send  two  members  of  the  standino-  Com- 
mission  to  Europe  to  prosecute  the  affair.  The  was 
between  England  and  Spain  prevented  the  execution 
of  the  purpose.  In  1744  a  school  for  gratuitous 
instruction  in  the  languages,  philosophy  and  divinity, 
was     established     for    supplying    vacancies   in    the 


22 

church.  Trustees  were  appointed,  and  Mr.  Alison, 
a  most  accomplished  scholar  and  a  leader  in  the 
church,  was  elected  Master,  and  collections  in  the 
churches  were  ordered.  This  school  gave  rise'  to 
Newark  Academy  in  Delaware,  since  chartered  as  a 
college.  Mr.  Alison  removed  to  Philadelphia  and 
took  charge  of  an  academy  which  subsequently  be- 
came a  college,  now  the  University  of  Pennsylvania, 
and  he  was  appointed  the  Vice-Provost.  Hence  the 
Synod  of  Philadelphia  or  Old  Side  established  no 
college  of  its  own. 

The  Synod  of  New  York  or  the  New  Side  was 
as  zealous  for  the  promotion  of  learning  as  for  the 
advancement  of  religion.  We  have  seen  how  the 
love  of  learninor  manifested  itself  in  New  England 
and  also  in  Virginia.  The  Scotch  inherited  their 
love  of  learning  from  the  days  of  the  Reformation, 
for  their  Book  of  Discipline,  adopted  by  their  first 
General  Assembly  at  its  meeting  in  1561,  stated  that 
"  it  was  imperatively  necessary  that  there  should  be 
a  school  in  every  parish,  for  the  instruction  of  youth 
in  the  principles  of  religion,  grammar  and  the  Latin 
tongue  ;  and  it  was  farther  proposed  that  a  college 
should  be  erected  in  every  '  notable  town,'  in  which 
looric  and  rhetoric  should  be  taugrht,  alone  with  the 
learned  languages."  And  the  patrimony  of  the 
church  was  appropriated  to  three  objects,  the  sup- 
port of  the  ministers,  the  schools  and  the  poor. 

It  has  been  observed  that  in  the  establishment  of 
all  our  early  colleges  it  was  a  desire  to  raise  up  an 
educated   ministry    that    animated     their    founders. 


23 

This  was  so  in  the  case  of  Harvard,  of  William  and 
Mary,  of  Yale,  and  of  the  College  of  New  Jersey. 
In  the  early  history  of  New  Jersey  allusion  is  made 
to  feelings  of  jealousy  and  even  of  unkindness  be- 
tween the  Scotch  and  the  English.  This  was  not  a 
question  of  nationality  but  of  religion.  By  "English'' 
are  meant  those  who  were  attached  to  the  Church  of 
England  as  by  law  established,  for  between  those 
who  came  from  New  England  and  those  who  came 
from  Scotland  there  was  entire  accord,  and  Independ- 
ents and  Presbyterians  had  united  in  one  religious 
body  as  they  agreed  in  doctrine.  'While  there  was, 
of  course,  complete  religious  freedom,  yet  dissenters 
were  not  so  much  favored  in  public  matters.  There 
had  been  Presbyterian  Governors,  but  they  had 
attended  the  worship  of  the  church  of  England. 
This  was  the  case  with  Campbell  and  the  Hamilton s, 
both  father  and  son.  It  was  not  until  1746  that  a 
charter  for  a  college  could  be  obtained  in  this  colony 
by  dissenters.  The  time  had  now  come  for  success. 
The  Presbytery  of  New  Brunswick  was  particularly 
interested  in  "  the  Log  College."  Moreover  by  the 
great  activity  of  its  prominent  members  in  connection 
with  the  revival,  they  were  not  in  favor  with  the  royal 
Governor,  Lewis  Morris,  and  "  the  Court  party." 
Hence  the  work  of  devising  measures  for  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  college  devolved  upon  the  ministers  and 
laymen  of  the  Presbytery  of  New  York,  most  of 
whom  lived  in  East  Jersey,  men  of  the  highest  repu- 
tation for  wisdom,  learning  and  piety.  They  had  for- 
tunately   escaped    the    unfavorable   opinion   of    the 


24 

Governor  and  his  friends.  Tliese  men  were  Dick- 
inson, Pierson,  Pemberton,  Burr  and  others.  Their 
first  petition,  for  a  charter,  however,  was  rejected  ; 
it  may  be  because  Gov.  Morris  thought  he  had  no 
right  to  grant  a  charter,  or  it  may  have  been  because 
they  were  Dissenters.  He  died  in  May  i  746,  and 
John  Hamilton,  son  of  Andrew  Hamilton,  Governor 
of  East  and  West  Jersey  under  the  proprietors  1 692- 
1702,  became  acting  Governor  for  the  second  time. 
The  petition  for  the  establishment  of  a  college  was 
renewed,  and  a  charter  was  granted  bv  the  Gover- 
nor with  the  consent  of  his  Council  without  asking 
the  consent  of  the  Provincial  Assembly  or  the  per- 
mission of  his  Majesty's  Home  Government. 

The  only  record  in  the  Archives  of  the  Colony  of 
this  most  important  transaction  is  in  the  following 
words  :  ''  Mem.  of  a  Charter  for  a  Colledge.  A  char- 
ter to  incorporate  sundry  persons  to  found  a  col- 
ledge passed  the  great  seal  of  this  province  of  New 
Jersey,  tested  by  John  Hamilton,  Esq.,  President  of 
His  Majesty's  Council  and  Commander-in-Chiet  of 
the  Province  of  New  Jersey,  the  22d  of  Oct.  1746." 

This  charter  was  never  recorded,  and  was  sub- 
sequently supplanted  by  the  more  liberal  charter 
granted  by  Governor  Belcher,  Sept.  13,  1748.  For 
this  he  was  styled  "  the  founder,  patron  and  bene- 
factor "  of  the  College.  The  history  of  this  first 
charter  and  the  relations  between  it  and  the  second 
charter  have  been  most  ably  discussed  by  ex-Presi- 
dent Maclean  in  his  History  of  the  College  of  New 
Jersey.      Into  the  matter  of  the  second  charter  and 


25 

the  great  services  of  Governor  Belcher  I  do  not  enter 
at  this  time,  I  cannot,  however,  mention  the  name  of 
Dr.  Maclean  without  alludino-  to  the  warm  affection 
which  all  we  old  graduates  and  friends  of  Nassau 
Hall  entertain  for  him,  and  particularly  expressing 
our  gratitude  for  his  admirable  History  of  the  Col- 
lege. 

The  desitrn  of  this  Collegre  was  that  it  mio^ht  be 

o  o  o 

a  "  seminary  of  piety  and  good  literature,"  to  furnish 
the  Church  with  a  pious  and  learned  ministry  and  to 
provide  liberally  for  the  intellectual  culture  of  all 
classes  of  youth  who  desired  a  liberal  education. 
It  was  not  a  State  Institution,  nor  was  it  ecclesias- 
tical. It  was  under  Presbyterian  control  ;  but  was 
characterized  by  that  wise  liberality  and  catholic 
spirit  that  have  ever  been  the  glory  of  the  Church  of 
which  we  form  a  part. 

And  now  having  obtained  a  charter  where  was 
this  College  to  be  located,  and  who  should  be  placed 
at  the  head  of  it  ?  Your  city,  then  a  small  town,  but 
one  of  the  most  important  places  in  the  colony,  had 
the  honor  of  shelterinp-  the  infant  college,  and  the 
eminent  pastor  of  your  church  was  selected  as  its 
first  President.  In  the  New  York  Weekly  Post  Boy, 
No.  2  11,  February  2,  [Old  Style,  13  New  Style], 
174I-,  appeared  the  following: 

"  Whereas  a  Charter,  with  full  and  ample  Privi- 
leges, has  been  granted  by  his  Majesty  under  the 
Seal  of  the  Province  of  New  Jersey,  bearing  date  the 
22d  October,  1746,  for  erecting  a  College  within  the 
said  Province,  to  Jonathan  Dickinson,  John  Pierson, 


26 

Ebenezer  Pemberton  and  Aaron  Burr,  Ministers  of 
the  Gospel  and  some  other  Gentlemen,  as  Trustees 
of  said  College  ;  by  which  Charter  equal  Liberties 
and  Privileges  are  secured  to  every  Denomination 
of  Christians,  any  different  religious  Sentiments  not- 
withstanding. The  said  Trustees  have  therefore 
thought  proper  to  inform  the  Public  that  they  design 
to  open  the  said  College  the  next  Spring  ;  and  to 
notify  to  any  Person  or  Persons  who  are  qualified  by 
preparatory  Learning  for  Admission,  that  some  tirrie 
in  May  next  at  latest,  they  may  be  there  admitted  to 
an  Academic  Education." 

In  the  same  paper.  No.  222,  April  20,  1747,  ^P" 
peared  : 

"  This  is  to  inform  the  Public,  That  the  Trustees 
of  the  College  of  New  Jersey  have  appointed  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Jonathan  Dickinson  President  of  said  Col- 
ledge,  which  will  be  opened  the  fourth  Week  in  May 
next,  at  Elizabethtown  ;  At  which  time  and  Place,  all 
Persons  suitably  qualified,  may  be  admitted  to  an 
Academic  Education." 

At  the  appointed  time  and  in  this  place,  began 
the  first  term  of  the  College  of  New  Jersey.  Who, 
now,  was  this  Rev,  Jonathan  Dickinson  who  had  been 
selected  for  the  responsible  position  of  President  of 
the  infant  College  ? 

Jonathan  Dickinson  was  of  English  descent. 
His  grandfather,  Nathaniel  Dickinson,  was  one  of 
the  first  settlers  of  Wethersfield,  Conn.  His  son 
Hezekiah  was  born  at  Wethersfield,  but  resided  at 
Stratford,  where  he  married  Abigail,  granddaughter 


27 

of  the  Rev.  Adam  Blackman,  the  first  minister  of 
Stratford,  Conn.,  and  a  graduate  of  Oxford.  The 
parents  of  Jonathan  Dickinson  resided  successively 
at  Hatfield,  Hadley  and  Springfield,  Mass.  He  was 
born  at  Hatfield,  April  22,  1688,  but  passed  most  of 
his  youth  at  Springfield,  and  possibly  spent  some- 
time with  his  maternal  grandfather  Blackman,  at 
Stratford  ;  and  probably  through  the  influence  of  the 
next  minister  of  that  town,  the  Rev.  Israel  Chauncy, 
one  of  the  founders  of  Yale  College,  he  entered  that 
institution  in  1702,  the  very  year  of  its  foundation, 
under  the  Rev,  Abraham  Pierson,  who  instructed  the 
students  at  his  house  at  Killingworth  ;  although  the 
Commencements  were  held  at  Saybrook.  His  father 
died  shortly  after  young  Dickinson's  graduation, 
which  took  place  in  1706.  He  studied  theology  and 
was  licensed  to  preach  the  Gospel.  He  came  to 
Elizabeth  in  1708,  his  attention  having  probably  been 
turned  in  this  direction  by  President  Pierson,  who 
had  been  pastor  of  the  church  in  Newark  from  1672 
to  1692,  having  been  the  colleague  and  successor  of 
his  father.  Mr.  Dickinson  was  ordained,  Sept.  29, 
1709,  by  the  ministers  of  Fairfield  County,  Conn., 
who  had  formed  a  Consociation  on  the  Saybrook 
Platform  just  twenty  days  before.  There  were  other 
ministers  who  took  part  in  the  ordination  ;  besides, 
"  messengers,"  i.  e.  elders  from  the  different  churches 
were  present.  The  Rev.  Joseph  Morgan,  who  had 
just  been  installed  pastor  at  Freehold,  N.  J.,  preached 
the  sermon  from  Mark  16:  16:  "  Go  ye  into  all  the 
world   and   preach   the   Gospel   to   every  creature." 


28 

The  sermon  is  still  extant,  a  copy  being-  preserved 
in  the  Library  of  the  Connecticut  Historical  Society 
at  Hartford.  The  first  Presbytery  of  our  church  was 
formed  in  1705,  and  Mr.  Morgan  became  a  member 
in  1710.  Mr.  Dickinson  was  not  twenty-one  years 
old  when  he  began  to  preach  in  this  town,  and  he 
was  but  little  more  than  twenty-one  when  he  was 
ordained.  His  field  was  very  extensive.  To  show 
how  large  were  the  charges  in  those  days,  I  may 
mention  that  Mr.  Dickinson's  field  of  labor  embraced 
what  is  now  Rahway,  Westfield,  Connecticut  Farms, 
Springfield  and  part  of  Chatham  besides  Elizabeth- 
town  itself.  Arduous  and  onerous  as  were  his  duties, 
he  proved  equal  to  them,  and  was  diligent  and  faith- 
ful in  the  performance  of  them.  Population  was 
sparse,  and  in  neither  province  of  New  Jersey  was 
there  any  church  or  even  minister  west  of  him.  As 
to  his  compensation,  we  learn  that  in  each  of  the 
townships  of  Newark,  Elizabethtown  and  Wood- 
bridge  in  I  7 1 6,  there  was  "  a  large  Independent  Con- 
gregation who  support  their  preachers  with  the  allow- 
ance of  ^80  per  annum,  besides  House,  Glebe  and 
perquisites  of  Marriages," 

He  united  with  the  Presbytery  of  Philadelphia, 
probably  at  their  meeting  in  Woodbridge,  April  29, 
1 71 7,  when  he  took  part  in  the  ordination  of  Mr. 
John  Pierson.  This  Presbytery  was  gradually  absorb- 
ing all  the  churches  and  pastors  of  New  England 
origin  outside  of  New  P^ngland,  and  Sept.  1 7, 1 7 1 7,  it 
met  at  Philadelphia  as  the  Synod  of  Philadelphia. 
And  the  next  year,  Sept.   19,  1718,  he  delivered  to 


29 

the  Synod  the  first  contribution  ever  made  by  this 
church  for  Presbyterial  purposes.  In  1720  he  was 
made  a  member  of  the  Standing  Commission  just 
appointed.  In  i  721  he  was  elected  Moderator  of  the 
Synod,  when  for  the  first  time  this  church  was  repre- 
sented in  Synod  by  an  elder.  The  records  of  the 
Synod  abundantly  prove  his  activity  in  all  ecclesias- 
tical matters,  and  his  name  appears  on  almost  every 
commission  of  importance.  He  and  others  at  this 
time  protested  against  an  act  of  the  Synod  which 
they  thought  claimed  too  great  power  for  the  body. 
But  in  1 721  they  withdrew  their  protest  and  pre- 
sented a  paper  drawn  up  by  Mr.  Dickinson,  which 
conceded  all  that  our  Church  has  ever  claimed  as  to 
discipline,  worship  and  the  right  of  appeal,  thus  show- 
ing that  the  protest  had  arisen  from  a  misconception. 
The  Synod  was  universally  pleased  and  unanimously 
joined  in  a  thanksgiving  prayer,  and  joyful  singing 
of  the  133d  Psalm.  Circumstances  in  this  town  and 
especially  in  Connecticut,  in  i  722,  induced  Mr.  Dick- 
inson to  publish  a  "  Defence  of  Presbyterian  Ordi- 
nation," in  reply  to  a  pamphlet  in  favor  of  Prelacy. 
The  controversy  that  sprang  up  continued  for  some 
time,  and  the  pamphlets  on  either  side  were  collected 
into  small  volumes. 

When  it  was  proposed  in  the  Synod  to  require 
of  every  minister  and  candidate  a  hearty  assent  to 
the  Westminster  Confession  of  Faith  and  Catechisms, 
Mr.  Dickinson  opposed  it.  He  did  this,  not  because 
he  did  not  accept  the  doctrines  taught  therein,  but 
because  he  was  opposed  to  all  creeds  of  human  com- 


30 

position.  The  discussion  that  ensued  greatly  agi- 
tated the  church,  but  finally  led  to  the  famous 
"  Adopting  Act."  The  Synod  was  unanimous,  and 
Mr.  Dickinson  was  one  of  those  who  unanimously 
agreed  in  giving  thanks  to  God  in  solemn  prayer  and 
praises  for  "that  unanimity,  peace,  and  unity,  which 
appeared  in  all  the  consultations  and  determinations 
relating  to  the  affair  of  the  Confessions."  He  was 
at  this  time  confessedly  "  the  ablest  man  and  most 
influential  member  of  the  Synod,"  and  yet  he  stood 
almost  alone  in  his  peculir  views.  But  he  modified 
his  own  views  in  accordance  with  those  of  his  breth- 
ren. And  he  was  present  at  what  may  be  called  the 
renewal  or  explanation  of  this  act  in  1736.  He  was 
again  Moderator  in  1742,  when  he  and  others  pro- 
tested against  the  exclusion  of  the  Presbytery  of  New 
Brunswick  without  trial,  and  he  also  bore  testimony 
to  the  evangelical  character  of  the  great  revival  then 
going  on  in  many  congregations.  He  was  very  ear- 
nest in  his  efforts  to  effect  a  reconciliation  between 
the  Presbytery  and  the  Synod,  but  found  it  impossi- 
ble. After  struggling  for  five  years  to  restore  peace 
and  harmony,  he  at  last  united  with  those  who  had 
been  aggrieved  in  forming  the  Synod  of  New  York, 
which  was  constituted  in  this  church,  Sept.  19,  1745. 
Mr.  Dickinson  was  chosen  Moderator,  and  the 
Synod  adopted  the  Westminster  Confession  of  Faith 
and  the  Larger  and  Shorter  Catechism  as  the  Synod 
of  Philadelphia  had  done  in  1 729.  In  the  new  Synod, 
as  in  the  old,  he  was  the  most  influential  member, 
the  acknowledged  leader. 


31 

We  have  thus  briefly  glanced  at  his  position 
in  the  Church.  Let  us  consider  him  as  an  author. 
He  hved  at  a  time  when  skepticism  was  prevalent 
among  educated  men,  and  when  the  love  of  many 
for  the  truth  even  in  the  Church  had  waxed  cold. 
Reason  was  exalted,  the  Inspiration  of  the  Bible 
was  denied,  its  glorious  revelations  were  neglected. 
He  preached  a  series  of  discourses  to  his  people  in 
defence  of  the  truth  against  prevalent  errorr.  These 
were  published  in  a  volume  entitled,  "  The  Reason- 
ableness of  Christianity."  They  treated  of  the  Being 
and  Attributes  of  God,  the  Apostasy  of  Man,  the 
Credibility  of  the  Christian  Religion  and  the  Divinity 
of  Christ.  This  volume  is  admirable  in  matter  and 
in  style.  His  first  publication  was  his  sermon  before 
the  Synod  when  retiring  from  the  position  of  Mod- 
erator in  1722,  "On  Church  Legislative  Power." 
His  "  Defence  of  Presbyterian  Ordination"  in  1724 
has  already  been  alluded  to.  He  was  again  involved 
in  the  Episcopal  Controversy  through  no  fault  of  his, 
and  preached  and  published  in  1736  his  "famed 
sermon  "  on  "  The  Vanity  of  human  Institutions  in 
the  Worship  of  God."  The  Controversy  was  closed 
by  him  in  1738,  by  his  "Reasonableness  of  non-Con- 
formity." Numerous  sermons  and  pamphlets  need  not 
be  noticed.  His  tract  upon  the  great  revival  under 
Whitfield,  published  at  first  anonymously,  produced 
a  great  effect.  Its  very  title  shows  its  exhaustive 
character  :  "  A  Display  of  God's  special  Grace,  in  A 
familiar  Dialogue  Between  a  Minister  and  a  Gentle- 
man of  his  Conereeation  About  the  Work  of  God  in 


J)- 


the  Conviction  and  Conversion  of  Sinners,  so  remark- 
ably of  late  begun  and  going  on  in  these  American 
Parts:  wherein  The  Objections  against  some  uncom- 
mon Appearances  amongst  us  are  distinctly  consid- 
er'd,  mistakes  rectify'dand  the  Work  itself  particularly 
prov'd  to  be  from  the  Holy  Spirit  With  An  Addition, 
in  a  second  Conference,  relating  to  sundry  Antino- 
mian  Principles,  beginning  to  obtain  in  some  Places," 
I  742.  It  has  been  compared  favorably  in  ability  and 
character  with  the  writings  of  Edwards  upon  the 
same  subjects.  The  name  of  the  author  soon  be- 
came known  and  it  received  the  strongest  commen- 
dation  of  the  leading  Congregational  clergymen  of 
Boston  and  the  most  prominent  ministers  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church. 

In  1743  and  1744,  he  published  Sermons  upon 
Regeneration,  and  in  1745  his  "  Familiar  Letters  to 
a  Gentleman  upon  A  Variety  of  Seasonable  and 
ImportantSubjectsin  Religion."  In  1741  he  publish- 
ed his  ablest  and  most  noted  work,  "  The  True 
Scripture  Doctrine  Concerning  some  important 
Points  of  Christian  Faith  ;  Particularly,  Eternal 
Election,  Original  Sin,  Grace  in  Conversion,  Justifi- 
cation by  Faith,  And  the  Saint's  Perseverance."  So 
admirable  and  practical  is  this  work,  that  it  is  upon 
the  Catalogue  of  our  Board  of  Publication  to  this 
day.  At  the  very  close  of  his  life  he  was  engaged 
in  defending  the  doctrines  of  Grace,  and  his  "  Sec- 
ond Vindication  of  God's  Sovereign  Free  Grace," 
was  published  from  his  MS.,  after  his  death,  by  his 
brother.     Such  was  he  as  an  author  and  a  theolo- 


gian  ;  confessedly  the  ablest  in  the  Presbyterian 
Church  at  the  time  of  his  death.  And  even  in  Great 
Britain  it  was  acknowledged  that  "the  British  Isles 
had  produced  no  such  writers  on  Divinity  in  the 
Eighteenth  Century,  as  Dickinson  and  Edwards." 

In  Church  Courts  he  was  ever  a  leader.  Famil- 
iar with  the  rules  of  procedure,  he  conducted  most 
wisely  his  side  of  the  great  controversies  in  which 
he  was  engaged  in  the  church.  Firm  where  he  felt 
that  he  was  right,  yielding  with  grace  when  con- 
vinced that  he  was  wrong,  seeking  some  method  of 
reconciling  conflicting  views,  his  sagacity  inspiring 
confidence  and  his  calm  judgment  securing  respect, 
and  even  his  firm  adherence  to  his  views  o-ivine  no 
offence  to  his  opponents,  he  secured  the  enthusias- 
tic admiration  of  his  friends,  and  all  who  knew  him 
seemed  to  love  the  man. 

As  a  preacher,  he  was  a  man  of  great  power; 
his  sermons  were  doctrinal,  with,  however,  special 
application  to  the  conditions  of  his  hearers  and  the 
character  of  the  tim^.  Both  the  matter  of  his  ser- 
mons, their  literary  excellence  and  the  manner  of  his 
delivery,  secured  and  retained  the  attention  of  his 
audience.  He  was  often  called  upon  for  special  ser- 
mons, and  he  delighted  in  assisting  his  brother  min- 
isters. Not  only  in  the  Church  courts  was  he  a 
counsellor;  but  ministers  and  churches  generally, 
were  wont  to  seek  his  advice  in  their  troubles. 

As  a  pastor  he  was  faithful  to  his  flock,  and 
gained  most  intimate  access  to  his  people  as  a  phy- 
sician of  their  bodies  as  well  as  of  their  souls.     For 


34 

to  his  many  other  accompHshments  he  added  that  of 
a  knowledge  of  medicine,  and  actually  practised  the 
profession,  gaining  considerable  reputation,  and  even 
publishing  upon  the  subject.  He  was  also  active  in 
promoting  missionary  labor  among  the  Indians. 
With  Pemberton  and  Burr,  he  represented  their 
condition  to  "  The  Society  for  Promoting  Christian 
Knowledge,"  formed  in  England  in  1709.  These 
three  were  authorized  to  employ  missionaries,  which 
they  did ;  Azariah  Horton  being  the  first,  and  David 
Brainard  the  second.  Brainard  found  in  Mr.  Dick- 
inson a  warm  friend  and  faithful  counsellor,  and  they 
were  much  attached  during  life.  Some  have  even 
attributed  the  founding  of  the  College  of  New  Jer- 
sey to  the  unjust  expulsion  of  Brainard  from  Yale 
College,  and  the  refusal  to  restore  him  at  the  solici- 
tatiorf  of  Edwards  and  Dickinson,  when  he  had 
properly  acknowledged  his  fault. 

This  then  was  the  man  who  was  selected  to  pre- 
side over  the  infant  College.  This  imperfect  and 
hasty  sketch  will  enable  you  to  judge  whether  he  was 
competent  for  the  new  duties  assigned  him.  He  did 
not  assume  even  these  without  preparation.  Like 
his  predecessors  in  the  pastorate  of  this  church,  he 
had  also  for  years  taught  a  classical  school  or  had  at 
least  received  young  men  into  his  house  to  fit  them 
for  the  ministry.  Thus  he  was  thoroughly  prepared 
in  all  respects  for  his  duties  as  President  of  a 
College. 

The  first  term  of  the  College  of  New  Jersey  be- 
gan in  Elizabethtowm  in  May,  1747,  at  Mr.  Dickin- 


35 

son's  house  on  the  South  side  of  the  old  Rahway 
road  and  directly  West  of  Race  street.  Tradition 
says  that  the  College  was  subsequently  transferred 
to  the  building  that  occupied  the  site  of  the  present 
Lecture-room  of  this  First  Presbyterian  Church. 
The  pupils  who  had  been  under  the  previous  instruc- 
tion of  President  Dickinson  formed  the  nucleus,  for 
within  one  year  from  the  opening  of  the  College 
there  were  six  students  prepared  to  receive  their 
first  degree  in  the  arts.  President  Dickinson  was 
probably  assisted  by  Mr.  Caleb  Smith  who  had  been 
teaching  here  and  studying  theology  under  him. 
Mr.  Smith  was  licensed  to  preach  in  April,  1747,  just 
at  the  time  Mr.  Dickinson  was  chosen  President. 
He  was  an  excellent  scholar  and  became  pastor  of 
Newark  Mountains,  now  Orange,  in  1748. 

President  Dickinson  had  only  the  honor  of  lay- 
ing the  foundations  of  the  College,  for  he  was  cut 
off  by  pleurisy,  Oct.  7,  1747,  after  an  administration 
of  only  five  months.  The  students,  said  to  have 
been  twenty  in  number,  removed  to  Newark  and 
were  placed  under  the  instruction  of  the  Rev.  Aaron 
Burr.  The  first  class,  consisting  of  Enos  Ayres, 
Benjamin  Chestnut,  Hugh  Henry,  Israel  Reed, 
Richard  Stockton  and  Daniel  Thane,  was  ready  for 
graduation  in  May,  1748  ;  but  at  the  request  of  Gov. 
Belcher  and  the  o-entlemen  associated  with  him  who 
desired  to  have  the  honor  of  sending  forth  the  first 
class,  their  graduation  was  repeatedly  postponed- 
until  the  new  and  more  liberal  charter  was  erantedi 
Mr.  Burr  was  elected  President ;  he  was  inaugurated 


36 

and  the  first  commencement  was  held  at  Newark, 
Nov.  9,  1748.  All  the  members  of  the  first  class 
save  one  became  ministers  of  the  Gospel,  and  Rich- 
ard Stockton  was  a  signer  of  the  Declaration  of  In- 
dependence, while  Enos  Ayres  was  also  distinguished 
in  civil  life.  The  subsequent  history  of  the  College 
and  its  final  removal  to  Princeton  do  not  belong  to 
this  discourse. 

President  Dickinson  was  noted  for  the  warmth  of 
his  piety  and  the  strength  of  his  devotional  feelings. 
With  an  unblemished  character,  after  a  life  of  con- 
sistency and  purity,  he  passed  away  just  as  he  had 
reached  the  acme  of  his  career,  when  the  promise  of 
years  of  usefulness  seemed  before  him.  With 
assured  confidence  he  remarked,  "  Many  days  have 
passed  between  God  and  my  soul,  in  which  I  have 
solemnly  dedicated  myself  to  Him,  and  I  trust  what 
I  have  committed  to  Him  He  is  able  to  keep  until 
that  day,"  and  then  passed  away.  Buried  among 
his  flock,  his  monument  is  with  you  unto  this  day. 
"He  was,"  as  Dr.  Hatfield,  in  his  excellent  History, 
remarks,  "by  common  consent,  the  greatest  man 
whose  name  adorns  the  Annals  of  the  town." 

Over  the  tomb  of  Sir  Christopher  Wren  in  St. 
Paul's  Cathedral  in  London  is  this  inscription  : 

"  Si  MONUMENTUM    REQUIRIS,  CIRCUMSPICE." 

So  with  Jonathan  Dickinson  ;  his  monument  is  not 
simply  the  stone  above  his  remains  in  the  adjoining 
cemetery.  Look  around  you  in  this  church,  in 
this  town,  in  the  college  over  which  he  presided  and 
which  has  now  been  transferred  to  another  place. 


Z1 

The  Rev.  Caleb  Smith  married  his  daughter  Martha, 
the  youngest  of  his  nine  children  by  his  first  wife, 
Joanna  Melyen,  One  of  his  descendants  through 
this  daughter,  Mr.  John  C.  Green,  whom  God  blessed 
with  abundant  wealth,  reared  to  this  eminent  man 
Dickinson  Hall  at  Princeton  which  commemorates 
the  name  of  his  crreai  ancestor  and  illustrates  his 
own  enlightened  Christian  liberahty.  In  this  de- 
scendant of  Jonathan  Dickinson,  Nassau  Hall  has 
found  her  greatest' benefactor,  whose  gifts  will  spread 
blessings  through  countless  years.  Wherever  the 
influence  of  Princeton  extends,  whether  at  the  bar 
where  right  is  protected,  or  on  the  bench  where  jus- 
tice is  dispensed  ;  in  the  Senate  where  laws  are  en- 
acted or  on  the  field  of  battle  where  liberty  is 
defended ;  or  in  the  church  where  the  gospel  is 
proclaimed  with  truth  and  power  there  will  the 
name  of  its  first  President  be  honored.  To  Dickin- 
son be  honor  ;  to  his  descendant  do  we  owe  thanks  ; 
but  to  God  be  the  glory  for  the  noble  work  which 
Nassau  Hall  has  accomplished  :  and  may  she  con- 
tinue in  the  discharge  of  the  duty  to  which  God  has 
called  her  until  He  shall  come  whose  rio;ht  it  is   to 


/ 


